3 Things Marc Jacobs Can Teach You About Social Media

Hello PR Couture babes! Amanda here. You might have seen me on PR Couture’s Instagram during SXSW. I’m back in San Diego and I’ve got a series of inspired articles to share with you covering my key takeaways from the conference.

For almost 2 weeks in March, thousands travel to Austin, Texas, for SXSW, the juggernaut of conferences, with interactive music, film, and gaming. Over the last five years, SXSW has added a “style” track to the interactive events and this year didn’t disappoint. In particular I was able to catch Marc Jacobs sharing a ton about his thoughts on social media, in particular how the MJ brand has used social media in his runway shows.

If you’ll remember, Marc Jacobs was Creative Director for Louis Vuitton before leaving in 2014 to focus on his own line. From using Instagram for inspiration, to crowdsourcing models, he’s done a lot with social media platforms.

So take a cue from MJ himself and consider the following the next time you sketch out how social media is going to support your next event.

Investigate Your Event Theme Through Existing Social Media Content

You’ve already worked with your team to come up with a plan and a theme and it’s time to execute. Prior to the event, do some user-generated content research around your event theme. Discover how others are using and sharing the theme of the event. You might discover a ton of creative inspiration based on how others have approached the concept.

Outside of events, social media behavior is still a powerful tool when developing PR or marketing campaigns. Let’s say you’re doing a shoe brand launch. Through social media you can discover how your target customer is representing their footwear across their social channels; do they post their shoes on the go, or in the box, a suitcase? Or you’re working on promotion for an upcoming magazine issue launch. Do readers post themselves with their favorite fashion magazines in coffee shops, their home or traveling? Jacobs loves using the Explore function on Instagram to see what’s new and what others are posting about.

Integrate Sponsors into Social Media Coverage

Don’t forget to involve your sponsors. Jacobs partnered with iPhone in his February 2017 show and involved them in the live runway show. During that partnership, he gave select models iPhone’s to capture photos as they walked down the catwalk. Jacobs also had staged audience members with iPhone’s to capture photos. This was a key way to let attendees see the sponsor’s item in motion and experience it.

Marc Jacobs loves using the Explore function on Instagram to see what’s new and what others are posting about.

At your own events, you can use your team to engage with attendees and social media audiences to add more authenticity.

Use Social Media as a Thank You Tool

Share the success of the event across your own channels and a thank attendees, sponsors, and your client with a recap video. Jacobs believes the biggest joy in social media is when people feel your humanity and realize that you are more than just a brand. Jacobs takes time to respond to a few comments when he has a free moment, which means the rest of us could all probably be doing a bit more to directly engage with the comments and DMs being sent across the platforms we manage, even our own!

My biggest takeaway from Marc Jacobs at SXSW was to have fun with your events, get creative, be inspired by the world around you, and most importantly be authentic and connect with your audience.

About This Author

Amanda Nelson is a social media expert, video enthusiast, and entrepreneur. Amanda founded Jupiter Production House in 2014 to offer full-service video production and social media support to nonprofits & purpose-driven companies. She was nominated for 2016 Women Who Mean Business Awards and speaks regularly on the power of social video storytelling.